Are you so excited for the 2018 Olympics that you wish you could,
like, become an Olympian yourself? We’ve got your back. Here are
the top health and fitness tips used every day by our favorite
Olympic athletes.

Mornings matter

Natalie Coughlin, 12-time
Olympic medalist.Lucy
Nicholson/Reuters

According to American swimmer, Natalie Coughlin,it’s time to
become a morning person. This 12-time Olympic medalist takes
breakfast very seriously and considers it to be a critical
foundation for the rest of your day.

“If you start your day off with a doughnut, you kind of trash
that day,”Coughlin
toldSheKnows.“But
if you start on the right foot, with a healthy breakfast, you’ll
be much more likely to continue making healthy choices the rest
of the day.”

So do your future self a favor and pair your morning coffee with
a balanced breakfast of good carbs and healthy proteins.
Satisfied and energized, you’ll be able to fearlessly conquer the
midday munchies later.

Schedule meals around your workouts

Kerri
Walsh of the US volleyball team.Reuters/Carlos Barria

Unlike Kerri Walsh, we can’t all fit in a daily beachfront
workout. However, we can still stealher killer
meal-prep tips. For this Olympic volleyball star, fueling
your body before, during and after your workout is essential for
optimal performance and recovery.

Walsh suggests eating an hour to an hour-and-a-half before a
workout and immediately consuming protein afterward. In between
your squats, burpees and power jams, don’t forget to pay
attention to your body too. Often reaching for sports drinks like
Gatorade while competing, Walsh reminds us to monitor and
maintain our energy levels while working out to ensure a strong —
and safe — finish.

Become friends with carbs

In the face of the extreme dieting trends we tend to see today,
it may come as a shock that carbohydrates aren’t the enemy of
serious athletes, but rather an important ally. In fact,
professional soccer player andgold medalist Abby
Wambachwouldn’t be able to get through
warm-ups without them. “Human beings need carbohydrates,” Wambach
toldSheKnows. “It’s our fuel. It
would be like getting into a car with no gas. It’s the energy
that makes you go.”

Wambach warns against low-calorie “quick-fix” diets and instead
suggests maintaining a more individualized nutrition plan and
experimenting to find the right amount of healthy, complex carbs
for your body type and fitness level. Hear that? It’s time to end
the feud with carbs.

Make fitness a family affair

Erika Brown, Olympic
curler.Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty
Images

We often forget that Olympians are parents too. So how exactly do
they squeeze fitness into their full-time schedule of parenting?
A busy mom of two, Olympic curler
Erika Brownsuggests integrating health and
fitness into family time in any way you can.

Remember: Your decision-making leaves an impression on your
children. The earlier you establish healthy habits, the better.
So, whether it’s running around with the kids in the backyard,
volunteering to coach their little league team or simply sitting
down for a healthy dinner, you are exemplifying the importance of
leading active lifestyles — and that deserves a medal in itself.

De-stress decompress

Nastia
Liukin, 5-time Olympic gymnast.Nick
Laham/Getty Images

After a lifetime spent on balance
beams,gymnast Nastia
Liukinknows a thing or two about
stability. For this five-time Olympic medalist, fitness is all
about seeking balance.

“Make sure you are getting plenty of sleep, taking time to
exercise and taking time to do the little things that make you
happy, whether it’s getting a fun manicure or reading a great
book or just taking a bubble bath,” Liukin
toldSheKnows.

Feeling stressed out can easily lead to impulsive, unhealthy
decision-making. So go ahead: Treat yo’self with some daily
me-time; it’s the Olympian-approved safeguard for your health
goals.

Remember to rest

Summer Sanders, US Olympic
swimmer.Dimitrios
Kambouris/Getty

Our vision of an Olympic athlete often involves an alarm clock
ringing at an absurdly early hour of the morning followed by an
unimaginably grueling workout framed by some version of the
infamous phrase, “no days off.”

This myth is busted byOlympic swimmer
Summer Sanders, who stresses the importance of recognizing
the difference between feeling
theburnand feeling
apain.

“A large percentage of running injuries need rest from running,”
Sanders, who now runs marathons competitively,
toldSheKnows. “When an injury occurs,
runners needs to stop and listen to their bodies, force
themselves to take a break from their training schedule and take
care of themselves.”

Even if you’re not a runner, give yourself a break. To prevent
overworking your body, experiment with cross-training to give
your muscles, joints and bones some recovery time. If you’re
lifting weights several times a week, try yoga. If you often do
high-impact workouts, incorporate swimming into your workout
regimen. In addition to mixing up your workouts, Sanders is also
a huge advocate for getting a solid night’s sleep. Permission to
get in bed before 9 p.m. granted.

Got all that? Good — you’re one step closer to being a gold
medalist. Now you’ve just gotta get yourself to Pyeongchang.